499. The Finale

Mori Gladius was dead.

He had been dead ever since the battle of Westshield. Scarlet knew it— she had seen it with her own eyes. The Champion of the Human Lands had clashed with Belzu. He had defeated the Primeval Demon in single combat, and it would’ve all been over there. But a third party emerged.

Levithus had killed Mori Gladius in one fell swoop. All it took was a single attack. But it was one that no one saw coming. Not even Belzu. Scarlet was certain it had been a Skill, from Levithus. She wasn’t sure whether it was an obfuscation Skill to hide his presence, or a Skill that let him attack his enemies with such deadly precision. It didn’t matter.

Mori Gladius died that day, and the man claiming to be him was a faker.

Scarlet was sure of it. He couldn’t be real. The Champion of the Human Lands would never have accepted a dance with the Red Rose. He was strictly abstinent from any worldly pleasures— even love.

She didn’t understand it, but she remembered what happened when she first confessed to him. And she had seen it time and time again after. It wasn’t just a set of principles he adhered to. He was religiously ascetic. It was in his very nature, and she always assumed it was a requirement for his Class or Title.

Either way, it wasn’t something that could just be forgotten, even as a result of amnesia. So Scarlet was certain she was right in her assessment. This was not Mori Gladius. She had been too overwhelmed by joy seeing him alive again to notice all the clues. But it was all there, laid out to her from the very beginning.

Mori never needed to sacrifice a level to resurrect. And even if that was the case, his resurrection was almost always instantaneous. He might not have divulged all the details of his Grand Skill to Scarlet, but she knew it wouldn’t have taken months before he finally returned.

Still, even if she knew this, who would believe her?

For the last week, Scarlet had mulled over this fact. She didn’t have definitive proof that this man wasn’t Mori Gladius— that he wasn’t the man she loved. Sure, she could explain her reasoning, but at the end of the day, it was all just a hunch. A feeling. And she might very well be wrong.

But more importantly, it was finally time to put an end to this senseless war with the Demons. If she exposed him now, there would be more unnecessary infighting. There was going to be a lot of time wasted to figure out if this was truly Mori Gladius. It would be a needless distraction to the goal at hand.

They were going to lay siege to Inor tomorrow. It was the Capital of the Inoria Empire, and Scarlet knew it was going to be the hardest battle yet. Levithus was going to be there. It was the site of the true grand ritual. And even if this Mori Gladius was a faker, he was actually helpful. He was still strong. He could be very useful there.

So Scarlet decided against speaking out for now. Yes, she knew this wasn’t Mori Gladius. But she would keep her mouth shut until the battle was over, then she would expose him.

The Red Rose resolved herself as the day of the battle came, and it was finally time to end things once and for all.

This was it.

I flew high in the sky, my [Angel’s Wings] beating behind me. I swept my gaze over the landscape. An army of hundreds and hundreds of thousands were gathered below me. Half a million Humans. Maybe even a little more than that. And they were all ready to march for the Capital of the Inoria Empire.

While their numbers might not seem like much in the grand scheme of things, this force was hastily gathered to deal with this grand ritual. In such a short amount of time, they sallied forth, unhindered by exhaustion or loss. There were other armies that could join us, however they would take too long to get here, and according to Clayton, the grand ritual would use up the last of its magic in a month’s time.

So we had to act quickly. And it wasn’t like the gathered armies were weak. It was the opposite, actually. This was the mightiest force the Human lands could muster. Every adventurer and soldier gathered here was far higher-leveled than their average counterpart. It wasn’t just them, either.

There were Elites from all across the world gathered here. There was Kaitlin Darkhelm, Commander of the Vaun Qieur Empire’s Swordsguard Forces. She was accompanied by the rest of the Swordsguard Forces. There were supposed to be about a thousand of them, each over Level 100, but their numbers had quite clearly fallen over the course of the war.

I spotted Gallus amongst the ranks of soldiers there. I tried waving at him, but he didn’t notice me. I tried searching for Alex Cromerth too, then I remembered he was dead.

There were also the [Mages] of Mavos Academy. They were mostly high Diamond Ranked in level, none of them beneath Level 130. And there were only a few dozen of them. Clayton Skyshredder led them, standing atop his usual nimbus cloud. He had his sword held before him, its blade stabbed into the floor of the cloud. Standing next to him was Thaddeus Reimar and Jola Wilf, both of whom were Elite Ranked themselves.

Helena Warshade wasn’t with them. The Great Tempest Archmage of Mavos Academy was with her company, joining the other adventurers on the ground. The Three Honorable Companies of the Human lands had joined forces to form a massive coalition of adventurers. Laux Lionfist, Alder Ashford, Scarlet Vermillion, and ‘Mori Gladius’ were there too.

Supposedly, there were a bunch of other Elites too. For example, Tyrian the Brightsbane Archer was apparently somewhere amongst the masses. The other two triumvirate leaders of the Forsaken Company were present as well, along with Titus the Thrilling Bard. Orgaf the Thief of the Golden Scales wasn’t anywhere to be seen, but I knew he was there.

Edithe stood with her company at the front, holding Hadrian by the hand as they readied themselves for the battle that was to come. Jaakko, Helen, and Zack must’ve been there too, although I couldn’t find them.

Daniel Song stood with a group of [Crusaders] behind him. He turned to Kacey, but she stepped aside. Instead, a man dressed in ornate armor stepped forward. An Elite Ranked [Crusader]. He nodded at the [Hero], but didn’t get a response.

Amanda wasn’t at this side, interestingly enough. Instead, I found her standing with Saffron and the Vampires. They were together with an eclectic group of other forces— Peris Dolonia and the Helbir League; the Sunmere Republic and a small regiment from the Alterian League; a coalition of the Eastern Kingdoms; and even a group of Cyclopes were there.

Those were the last of the forces. I nodded approvingly at them. There had to be at least two dozen Elites gathered here today. About a quarter of all the Elites in all of the Human lands. It really was an impressive sight to have them come together for a single purpose. But they understood the gravity of this situation. This merger wasn’t something that could be ignored any longer.

The entire world shook as they marched forward, streaming away from the encampment, leaving behind only a small force to guard their supplies. I descended towards the very fringe of the rows of tents and met a burning figure waiting there.

One of my clones stood next to Willy and the baby Wyverns. I nodded at Novis, Bellum, and Oriur as they ran up to me for a hug.

“Mama! Stay safe!”

“I will.”

I smiled back at them, returning their warm embrace. I closed my eyes and whispered softly.

“I love you three, alright? Make sure you behave.”

They blinked. The three baby Wyverns exchanged a glance, then nodded excitedly.

“Will behave!”

I stepped back, nodding at Willy.

“They really take after you.”

“No, you.”

He snorted. I smiled at him.

“Take care of them, Willy. And you too, me.”

I gave my clone a warning look. She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.

“Will.”

She spoke, which still surprised me. I didn’t expect my clones to be able to speak, but thanks to my evolution, they were now capable of some speech.

“I’m going now!”

I waved at the five of them as I started flying after the marching army. Novis, Bellum, and Oriur waved back at me, tearing up, but not giving chase incessantly like they normally did.

“Bye Mama!”

Willy and my clone slowly ushered them back, and I watched them go. They vanished back into the encampment as I cast my gaze forward. I blinked as I noticed a shadow speeding beneath me.

“Oh, there you are Orgaf.”

The [Nightcrawler Shadower] emerged from the darkness trailing after me. Half his head poked out, and he gave me a nod.

“I knew you’d be saying one final goodbye to them. But I thought I’d check where you were going when you flew off by yourself.”

“Huh. Did you think I was going to run away or something?”

I crossed my arms at him, but Orgaf scoffed.

“You killed Ira, Salvos. I trust you are on our side fully— I have trusted you for a long time. Not to mention that that’s an impressive feat in itself. Even Helena Warshade failed to defeat him.”

“It’s just because I had my Grand Skills!”

I waved a hand off dismissively. But the Thief of the Golden Scales was insistent.

“You are a Lesser God now. I have always known you were strong, but you have surpassed all my expectations of you. I do not care that you are a Demon, I want to see how far you’ll go.”

“That’s.. nice of you, Oraf.”

I found myself smiling back at the Elite [Rogue]. He was finally accepting me for who I was. Sure, he had known I was a Demon for a while, but it almost felt like he was just brushing that fact off. Now, he wasn’t. Now he acknowledged it without discrimination.

For a moment, I wondered if I could consider him as a companion. But I shook my head, deciding I would figure it out later.

“Thank you. But first, let’s focus on putting a stop to this grand ritual, alright?”

“Very well. I will still keep a close eye on you during the battle.”

He nodded in response before sinking back into his shadows. I watched as Orgaf sped forward, zipping away from me back to the armies. I probably could’ve kept up with him as I was now with [Haste], but I didn’t try to give chase.

Instead, I flew at my own pace, watching the army march ahead, entering the white plains. They reached the crimson skies, and their movements slowed. But they never turned back. They kept pressing forward. They only had one destination in mind.

In the distance, a crimson pillar shot to the sky, striking the dome overhead. It was a massive red beam that dwarfed the size of all the sub-rituals combined. It enveloped a quarter of the city. Most of Inor had crumbled away, replaced with white mountains and black pools.

I narrowed my eyes, seeing the familiar landscape of the Netherworld, so distinctly lain into the Mortal Realm. And that was when I saw all the little figures gathered about the rocky surface. I recognized their familiar pink bodies. Their pig-like snouts. [Legions]. A hundred thousand of them.

And they weren’t alone. There were Greater Demons and Archdemons of all kinds hovering over the [Legions]. Ten thousand of them at the very least. They were clearly prepared for battle— they were evidently here to defend the grand ritual site. An army of Demons to match ours.

But they were far smaller in size. Barely a fifth of our own coalition army. I looked down towards the marching Humans, and I could see their spirits being lifted from the realization that this was going to be a one-sided battle.

However, their expressions quickly changed when shadows emerged from the crimson pillar. I blinked, frowning as a massive horde of wild Demons joined the waiting army at Inor. [Hellhounds] and their evolved counterparts bounded forward en masse, and [Vampyr Bats] swarmed up in a massive black flock. But amidst those low-leveled winged Demons were larger figures. Ones that had the wingspan of a small house, and rows of serrated teeth in their maw.

[Vampyr Chiroptera - Lvl. 130]

[Vampyr Chiroptera - Lvl. 121]

..

There were [Changelings] and [Hellbeasts] and all kinds of high-leveled Demons mixed into this horde. But even these Archdemons weren’t enough to deter the Human army. They saw the [Savage Agarats] flying out of the crimson pillar, and marched without fear.

But then a large shadow appeared at the other side of the grand ritual. I blinked, and the army slowed for the first time as a hulking figure pulled itself up into the Mortal Realm. It was a winged beast that spanned a hundred feet long, with wings twice as long as its body. It had the mouth of an alligator, and dozens of tendrils dangling beneath its body. It looked like a [Savage Agarat], except ten times larger.

It flew amongst them as my eyes grew wide.

“That’s..”

[Chthonic Agaros - Lvl. 165]

“A wild Primeval Demon.”

I bit my lower lip. I glanced down at the Human army, and they wavered. But Daniel Song shouted something as Mori Gladius whispered a Skill, which restored their morale. Now emboldened, they were moving faster than ever.. until—

I heard the high-pitched shriek. I recognized the first of the long limbs protruding from the portal. Legs as tall as a building. Chitin that was as dark as night. Bulbous segmented bodies, and eight eyes that glowed in the dark.

I watched as a horde of Demon spiders poured out of its back. Thousands of [Aranea] at once. And it wasn’t alone.

[Archarachne - Lvl 169]

[Archarachne - Lvl. 166]

A pair of [Archarachnes] joined the [Chthonic Agaros]. They stood obediently, waiting like watchful guard dogs. Helena herself came to a halt, staring at those wild Primeval Demons.

Now, the entire army had stopped. Not necessarily out of fear, but because the various Human leaders had ordered so. They warily watched, waiting for whatever else there was waiting for them in Inor.

And a final figure emerged from the grand ritual. I blinked as a pair of giant bone-like wings protruded from the crimson pillar. A four-armed beast ascended to the sky. Its pure black body was illuminated by the glowing red sky. It looked forward, its skull-like face focused on the Human army, like a hungry dog.

This time, I was the one to come to a halt.

[Hellabomination - Lvl. 175]

“Huh.”

I stared at the army of [Legions]. I swept my gaze over the flying Archdemons, looking past the horde of wild Demons. My gaze landed on the pair of [Archarachnes] standing beside the [Hellabomination] as the [Chthonic Agaros] hovered overhead.

“That is a lot of Primeval Demons.”

And I realized this battle was going to be a lot harder than I initially thought.